| Goofy's Sky School | |
 | |
| Disney California Adventure | |
| Land | Paradise Pier |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering |
| Manufacturer | Mack Rides |
| Attraction type | Steel Roller coaster - Wild Mouse |
| Opening date | February 8, 2001 (as Mulholland Madness) July 1, 2011 (as Goofy's Sky School) |
| Hosted by | Goofy (voiced by Bill Farmer, safety spiels) |
| Ride duration | 1:45 minutes |
| Length | 1200 ft (365.8 m) |
| Maximum speed | 27 mph (43.5 km/h) |
Goofy's Sky School is a steel wild mouse roller coaster at Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort in California. It opened on July 1, 2011. It used to be Mulholland Madness which was named after Mulholland Drive.
Summary[]
Goofy's Sky School is a wild mouse roller coaster manufactured by Mack Rides. Walt Disney Imagineering have designed the theme for the ride based upon Disney's animated cartoon "Goofy's Glider". Riders board a plane and navigate a crash course of flying which features sharp turns, steep drops and sudden stops. Goofy is pictured on billboards throughout the ride teaching guests the step-by-step process of flying a plane. Unlike the other coasters at Disneyland Resort, there are no gates on the loading platform.
History[]
Goofy's Sky School originally opened on February 8, 2001, as Mulholland Madness. The attraction's original name came from Mulholland Drive named after William Mulholland. Within the first month of its operation, three accidents occurred on the ride causing it to be shut for a short period of time for repairs. The ride vehicles were themed to the many cars one can find on the Southern California freeway systems, (such as Highway Patrol cars or Classic Surfer "Woodies"). At the end of the ride, a sign on the wall above read "Rental Car Return".
On October 12, 2010, Mulholland Madness closed for refurbishment and re-theming as part of Disney California Adventure Park's major refurbishment. On July 1, 2011, the attraction reopened as Goofy's Sky School. The attraction's re-opening is the latest in a series of moves to attempt to introduce classic Disney characters into Paradise Pier. It has the same tracks as the original Mulholland Madness ride has
It has been reported that Goofy's Sky School will be the location of a future E ticket ride.
The original Mulholland Madness ride was often criticized for being an "off-the-shelf", carnival-style ride with a weak theme. Brady MacDonald of the Los Angeles Times describes the re-themed Goofy's Sky School ride as "little more than a Band-Aid meant to hide an unseemly scar that earned the Anaheim theme park its on-the-cheap reputation". He goes on to say that an "ordinary Wild Mouse coaster doesn't belong in a Disney park and is an embarrassment" when compared with other Disney coasters such as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain and the Matterhorn Bobsleds. He concluded by stating that "the ride should have been removed rather than remade". In response to the Los Angeles Times' critical review, Screamscape's Lance Hart points out that several other rides (such as Gadget's Go Coaster, Silly Symphony Swings, Jumpin' Jellyfish and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith) are also off-the-shelf and are seen at many other parks around the world. He states that "off-the-shelf rides systems are fairly hard to avoid these days. Sometimes you can dress up a ride system to look different and unique… sometimes you can’t". Lance Hart concludes by saying that "a good wild mouse coaster would be in my top 3 must-have attractions" for a boardwalk style park such as Paradise Pier. Like Screamscape, others have been less critical of the updated ride. Several have stated that the ride is better than its predecessor and that it better suits the theme of a Disney theme park.
Trivia[]
- There are various references and easter-eggs in the queue. These include:
- An asphalt service run by, "Claude Coates", referencing imagineer/animator Claude Coats (1913-1992) while making a pun on his name.[1]
- The queue identifies Goofy as buying moonshine as fuel from Big Al at the Bear Brothers Backwood Brewery, Big Al being a character from the Country Bear Jamboree.[2]
- A flyer from the Babbit Employment Agency tributes animator Art Babbitt (1907-1992) who developed the character of Goofy.
- Goofy has a notice from beach patrol officer George Geef, a name used as an alias of Goofy in various of his cartoons.
- The, "I Fix Planes" posting says to contact Spin Evans at 1955 Mulholland Highway. 1955 is a reference to Disneyland Park's opening year while Mulholland Highway tributes the attraction Mulholland Madness which Goofy's Sky School replaced.
- There is a flyer from Mickey Mouse inviting people to attend the premiere of the short The Band Concert (1935). This references the attraction Silly Symphony Swings which is based on the Band Concert.
- Kinney Outdoor Advertising is a tribute to animator Jack Kinney (1909-1992) who was primary director on a Goofy series of shorts.